All posts by sheillaolga

Electricity remains to be a difficulty in many parts of Africa. Even where there is a access to a grid, there are problems with reliability. Many African cities run to the song of generators firing up during times of blackout and even then it is not everyone that is fortunate to have a generator, or the money for the fuel to run it. According to the IEA, World Energy Outlook 2016, sub-Saharan Africa had an urban electrification rate of 63% and a rural rate of just 19%! It is not only households that struggle when access to electricity is limited. Local businesses are in some cases impossible. Coldstores, internet cafes and even bars and restaurants are all either impossible to set up in some areas, or very challenging and costly to run.

There are many schemes and innovations that have been set up to offer renewable solutions. The Solar…

Until recently, renewable-powered mini-grids were viewed as capable of delivering only basic energy services – for single houses or small communities – but recent technological innovations are changing that perception. Increasingly, renewable energy mini-grids offer a means to meet much larger power needs, including for industry.

Since 1990 energy access has improved and nearly two billion more people have gained access. However, more than a billion people still lack electricity access and another billion have only an unreliable supply. To achieve universal electricity access by 2030, the pace of expansion needs to at least double, and estimates suggest that off-grid solutions will provide roughly 60 per cent of the additional generation needed.

When I was growing up I knew I was going to be successful. I loved school and my grades were in line with my dreams.I imagined having a family, a beautiful house, a nice car, gorgeous kids and taking family vacations, everything looked so real.I just couldn’t wait to grow up.

Last year, as the year was coming to an end, I almost lost my job and things didn’t get better after that, so I decided to quit my job and figure my life out. Everything wasn’t going according to plan. I finished school, got good grades in campus, got a job then another then another and now I was tired of looking. So I decided to start my business. It seemed like a great idea. Now all my childhood fantasies were on the way to becoming a reality. I had a few friends to back me up on the…

Plunge into the deep Balinese jungle and you might suddenly find a bamboo building soaring above you. Made from the frankly unlikely building material, the ethereal structures are the brainchildren of designer Elora Hardy and her team at Ibuku (TED Talk: Magical houses, made of bamboo). The one-of-a-kind houses are curving, magical and utterly stunning. Take a look.

Six floors of bamboo home

Sharma Springs, a private home in Sibang Gede in Bali, has four bedrooms and stretches over six floors. It’s one of the tallest bamboo buildings in Bali; its design is intended to make you think of the petals of a lotus flower. Photo courtesy of Rio Helmi.

Intricate, interwoven bamboo

This fifteen-meter tunnel (shown under construction) leads into the ground-level entrance of the Sharma Springs home. Things can get very complex when building with bamboo. Photo courtesy of Ibuku.

Bamboo bridge in the jungle

I’ll date you because I choose to. I will desire you with every dawn and I will desire you with every dusk. I will date you because you make me laugh, because despite your flaws and your temperaments, my heart feels safe within your hands. I will date you and I will pay no mind to the alternative, I will turn a blind eye to the people who stare because my gaze was made for your gaze. In this generation option creeps into relationships like a dangerous siren, but I will never be swayed by its song, for when I date you, I will date only you.

I will date you in a forgetful way. I wont be able to recall the time you were born, or your mothers middle name. I will forget mini anniversaries, I will forget appointments. However, I will never forget the way you…